


A Bad Date

by BlueNerdBird



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, Happy Birthday Inigo!, M/M, Street Performers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-08
Updated: 2016-08-08
Packaged: 2018-08-07 11:13:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,723
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7712713
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueNerdBird/pseuds/BlueNerdBird
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Xander gets set up on a bad date by his father. Things only get worse until they run into some street performers.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Bad Date

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sanyoushi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sanyoushi/gifts).



> I wrote this for Inigo's birthday but didn't finish it in time to post it then. Also I felt badly writing Lily as such a mean person, but I didn't model her after anyone in the game.

Xander didn’t know how his night could get any worse. After he received word from his father that he had been set up on a date, he was confused at first, but looked forward to it. Between his senior year at University, his internship at the family business, and taking care of his siblings, dating wasn’t high on his priority list. Even though he had no idea who the girl was, he could make a guess that if he got along well with her, that the company would ultimately benefit.

Despite his father’s meddling, he had been determined to give his date a fair chance, it wasn’t her fault that his father was one step away from making their family a fascist dictatorship.

His father had arranged everything, giving Xander little choice in the matter anyway. They were going to meet at a fancy restaurant downtown, right next to the lake. Garon must’ve really wanted the date to go well, because it just so happened that Garon met Xander’s mother in the same area.

Just before heading out, he had put on a nice button-up shirt and thought hopefully, _“Give her a chance Xander, it’s been too long since you’ve been out on a date. Enjoy yourself.”_

Xander was wrong. He had wanted to like his date, he really did, but somehow his father had managed to set him up with the worst date he’s ever had.

She was undoubtedly beautiful, but it was clear she was only interested in him for one reason. The restaurant had the perfect ambiance for romance, dim lighting with candles at each table, most of them made for only two people, and soft piano music in the background. Despite the romantic setting, all she wanted to talk about was the family business. Xander tried to ask her about her own life, hobbies, occupation, the usual date topics, but each time she diverted the conversation. More than once, she asked him whether Nohr Enterprises was importing illegal goods. It got to the point where Xander just wanted to go home.

The disappointment must’ve shown on his face, because his date began to get frustrated, and even flirted with the waiter, while he was bringing the ticket. It was no surprise when she pushed the ticket toward him, clearly expecting him to pay it. He didn’t have a problem with paying it, but it was the callous way she had started treating him after he refused to divulge his family’s secrets. He wasn’t sure where his father had found a girl like this, let alone think that Xander would like her, but he just pushed all his feelings down. It did nothing to help the company, if his father was really determined to do this, then he knew that ties with her would ultimately benefit the company, so once again he had to keep his mouth shut and play the part of dutiful son.

Since their date had not gone as late as planned, Xander proposed that they walk around the boardwalk area. There were local shops and dessert stalls, and at night there would sometimes be performers along the way.

“I don’t know why you would want to go there, it’s not like there are any reputable shops there, just a bunch of weirdos,” his date said. Xander cringed, he had gone here frequently with his siblings when they were younger, had been here on dates before, had memories of the boardwalk stretching back to when his mother was still alive.

“Come now Lily, I know there are plenty of good shops and talented performers there at this time of night. It can’t hurt to give it a try.” Xander tried his luck and extended his hand to her. If he his father needed things to work out with this woman, for the sake of the company, he had very little choice in the matter. It would be best for both of them if they were at least on good terms.

She rolled her eyes and huffed at him, but he breathed a sigh of relief as she took his hand.

Together, they walked hand-in-hand down the boardwalk. Xander admired the displays in many of the shops, but Lily was not interested, despite his attempts at getting her to try. After at least fifteen minutes of trying to get her to enjoy what they had to offer, Xander was ready to give up. His usual joy at walking along his favorite strip was diminished.

He turned to her, ready to concede and go back to the car to drive her home, when he heard a faint singing in the distance. It was joined by strings and a haunting melody, and Xander felt himself drawn to it. Holding her hand again, he led her along, drawn to the music like a moth to a flame. Though he would not admit it, he loved going to see local performers play for fun on the boardwalk more than the shops there.

Lily voiced her complaints about his sudden change in demeanor, but quieted once they reached the source of the music. There was a group of performers, a drummer, guitarist, violinist, and a dancer. They were all clearly friends, communicating to each other seamlessly, blending the sound of each flawlessly as the dancer sang. His style was unlike so many dancers he saw on the boardwalk, where most were flashy and aggressive, his style was smooth and flowing.

His pink hair should’ve been more striking, but it wasn’t. The song was slow and mysterious, matched by the graceful movements of the dancer. Dressed in silky clothes, he captivated the crowd with pirouettes and leaps, his arms sweeping the air.

Then the song changed, the key shifted to a more serious, minor key. The dancer’s voice dropped as his movements became faster and riskier, his jumps higher and his turns quicker. As his voice got deeper, Xander felt his heart beat faster in his chest, threatening to burst. Never before had a song captivated him as much, nor a dancer made his heart beat so fast. As the song began to slow down once again, his movements returned to the way they were before, more gentle and soft, almost inviting the audience into his arms, joined with his smooth voice and slight accent, Xander found himself wishing he was in the arms of the mysterious dancer.

As he finished with a bow, the crowd that had formed around him burst into applause. The little jar in front of them read _‘Donation Fund for Cancer Patients.’_ Unable to keep a smile from his face, Xander fished out a twenty-dollar bill and put it in the jar, which had quickly filled to the brim.

“Thank you all for your generous donations!” the dancer said, breathing heavily from his dance, “My name is Laslow, our drummer is Odin, our guitarist Selena, and our violinist Brady! We’ll be playing several selections for you tonight, that first was just a small taste of what’s to come.”

As they began their next performance, Xander felt the rest of the world fall away. Laslow’s hips moved in time with the drums and Xander felt his heart race again, his muscles getting tense as he followed Laslow’s movements. With each leap and turn, Xander felt his palms sweat, Laslow was the most beautiful dancer he had ever seen.

The second performance was over just as quickly as the first, but this time as Laslow bowed to the audience, his eyes met Xander’s. Before that night, Xander had never been one to believe in soulmates, but in that moment he would’ve believed it. For a second everything stopped, and he only hoped that Laslow felt the same as he returned his eyes to the rest of the crowd.

“Are you going to take me home? I’m tired of watching this mediocre dancing, it’s not any kind of dance before, he’s making a mockery of professionals,” said Lily, painfully reminding him that he had a rather unpleasant date to deal with. He hoped that Laslow hadn’t heard her, but one look back to the stage, and his red cheeks and uneasy smile said it all.

“Lily, I’ve tried to be nice to you this entire evening, but you have tried my patience. He is a gifted dancer, and you have been nothing but disrespectful. I don’t know how you convinced Garon to set you up on a date with me, but you will have to call a taxi home.” Finally voicing his feelings, Xander felt a huge weight lift off of his shoulders. As she stormed off, he turned to see Laslow looking at him, speechless. Their eyes met again, and Xander felt a flutter in his stomach. He tried giving Laslow a kind smile, and it seemed to work, at least in making his cheeks turn bright red again.

As he watched Laslow begin the next dance, he thought of how his father would react once he found out what had happened. He shouldn’t have snapped at her, yes she had been rather ungrateful and rude, but he still needed to obey his father and bear the brunt of his actions. Xander knew deep down that he shouldn’t lay down and take his father’s word as law, but thinking and doing are two very different things.

As his worries built up regarding his father, watching Inigo move seemed to cast them away. He knew in his heart that he would have to deal with him someday, but he had too much power over Xander. If he went after Garon, then Garon would cut him off and tarnish his name. He had enough money that he could pay some reporter to write Xander into unemployment. Not only that, but he would cut off Elise from everyone and take away Leo’s college fund. Camilla would come back from her charity work overseas and get cut off as well without knowing why. At least Corrin was safe with her birth family.

It would be his fault. All his life, his father had threatened them and held them in the palm of his hand. Xander had to help raise his siblings while Garon spent his days at the office and comfort them after he would come home. Garon was the reason he was pursuing a business degree, he was the reason Xander often woke up with nightmares, and why he would probably have no say in who he married, or the job he would have.

Xander shook his head, it did nothing good to brood on his issues with his father. What mattered right now was the attractive pink-haired dancer captivating everyone nearby. The song he was performing to was beautiful, accompanied by the soft guitar and piano, even the drums began to slow to a steady, gentle rhythm.

Then Laslow slowed his dance to something different. It became less leaping and turning, and more… _intimate_. He picked a fan up off the floor, with silk flowing from it, and danced with it. It flowed like water around him as he moved with a grace Xander had never seen. His arms seemed to guide air around him, guiding an invisible partner.

His voice was soft, and while Xander could tell his voice was not the strongest, it matched perfectly with his style of dancing. All his worries and fears were drowned out by the sound of the music.

Laslow finished the song again with a bow, and Xander was unable to keep the smile from his face as he applauded with the rest of the crowd. This time however, Laslow set his fan down and turned to face the crowd.

“Thank you all for enjoying our performance so far! Now for the next part of our performance, I’m going to need a volunteer,” the man said, looking out into the audience. Despite his incredible performance, Laslow’s request was met with silence.

“No problem, such a shy crowd tonight, if I may, would you join me on stage sir?” Laslow pointed to Xander, and he felt his heart stop beating. Somehow he managed to nod his head and walk forward to meet Laslow.

“For this next song, I am going to teach you all how to dance like professionals!” Laslow said excitedly. Xander froze, what was he doing?

“First things first, what’s your name?” Laslow asked, and it took Xander a minute to find his voice.

“Xander,” he answered coolly, like he wasn’t freaking out in his head.

“Excellent, now Xander, do you know how to dance?” Laslow asked.

“Just the waltz, and I’m not very good,” Xander replied, unable to look away from the captivating man in front of him.

“Excellent! Don’t be ashamed, it’s always hard to do at first. And all of you out there, if you would care to learn, grab a partner and follow along!” Laslow said, and grabbed hold of Xander’s waist.

“Now for this kind of dance, if you’re leading, match my steps,” Laslow stepped forward, guiding Xander with him, and turned and stepped again, “If you’re not leading, just follow your partner and have trust in them,” Laslow said, and Xander felt a warmth in his cheeks. Despite just having met him, Xander couldn’t help but trust in him.

“It’s similar to a waltz, the steps are, but the individual moves are different. Take a second to practice the steps. Odin, if you would give us a steady beat that’d be great,” Laslow said with a bright smile, which his friend returned and started beating a steady rhythm.

They danced for a second, and Xander felt genuine happiness for the first time in a while. Here in a stranger’s arms he felt as happy as he did as the last time all his siblings were together. Now, spread to the winds, he hardly saw them, besides Elise and Leo. With Camilla halfway across the world and Corrin visiting her birth family across the country, he felt lonely more often than not. He smiled at this complete stranger leading him in a dance.

As Laslow grinned up at him, Xander felt like he was looking at the sun. Xander was almost disappointed as he directed his smile back toward the crowd and gave the next steps.

“Now I’m going to spin you like this,” Laslow tried to reach his arm over Xander’s head and fell back with a laugh. After a second attempt, Xander saw him balance on the very tip of his toes, reaching over in the style of a ballet dancer, and Xander was impressed. He followed along with Laslow’s routine, matching his movements as they came.

Laslow again turned and instructed the audience, many of whom had taken a partner and were genuinely trying to learn, bringing another smile to Xander’s face. They continued to dance for several minutes before Laslow announced that they were going to put it all together.

He cued the musicians, and as they started, they began to dance. What had been slightly awkward and tentative before had become something easy, Xander trusted Laslow’s steps to lead them right, for his arms to direct Xander, and for his smile to bring him back into the light. Xander forgot about the crowd and the music as it became just him and Laslow.

At one point Xander stepped on Laslow’s foot by accident and looked at him apologetically, but Laslow just laughed and guided him back into the rhythm of the song. By the time the song was finished, Xander felt warm inside and had a big smile on his face, though it was impossible not to with the way Laslow was smiling at him. Before they faced the crowd, Laslow whispered,

 _“Please stick around, I’d like to talk to you once we’ve finished performing.”_ Xander nodded in response. He felt his cheeks heat again as Laslow took his hand and held them up, bending forward in a bow. Unsure of what to do, Xander followed suit. He had never performed anything in front of people, but he was glad he could do it with someone as talented as Laslow.

He felt a slight loss as his hand left Laslow’s, but wasn’t too disappointed, as Laslow started right up again into the next song without missing a beat. While Laslow danced, a few people came over and complimented him on his dancing skills, asking whether he had ever met Laslow before. When he told them no, several seemed quite surprised. Knowing that he didn’t make a fool of himself, Xander felt a rush of pride, not like the kind he felt when he got praise from his father, but the kind that reminded him that he was more than just his father’s son. He was his own person, whether or not his father told him to do it.

The more he watched Laslow, the more he came to appreciate his quirks. He liked the way Laslow grinned at the other performers like they were more precious to him than anyone, the way he would wink at some of the women in the crowd, and in one instance toward Xander, and the way he closed his eyes just before beginning the next song.

As the night went on, many people in the crowd began to disperse, going back to whatever they were doing before, but with a spring in their step. If magic existed, Xander knew that Laslow wielded it with his dancing abilities. It seemed to lift his spirits more than anything else, whenever his thoughts threatened to go south again, Laslow seemed to bring them back.

When Laslow finished his last song with a bow, he was met with as much applause as 10 people could give, there were even a few whistles.

“Sorry to bow out, but we’ve worked awfully hard this evening and many of us have day jobs. I hope you all have enjoyed our show, and have a great night!” Laslow said, and the musicians set their instruments down and joined hands with him for a final bow.

Xander felt odd sticking around as everyone was leaving, but he wanted to meet Laslow for real, and hopefully get his number. He watched as Laslow bounced around each of his friends, brimming with excitement. The only one that seemed to match his excitement was Odin, the blond drummer. Both Selena and Brady looked amused at their antics, but weren’t going to admit it out loud.

“Ah, Xander! You stayed!” Laslow said, bouncing over to Xander.

“Well you did ask me,” Xander said, and a blush grew on Laslow’s face.

“Yes, I did, didn’t I? I wasn’t sure whether you would, but I’m glad you did! Come meet everyone,” he said, and led Xander over to where they were packing up.

“Ooh, this must be your chosen partner! Xander, your untampered grace on stage is inspiring, it is clear why Inigo chose you above the others,” said the drummer, Odin, and Xander felt his head spin.

“I’m sorry? Who’s Inigo?” he asked, and Odin hit his head.

“Of course! You are not in on our greatest secret, we are all using our names as they are written in the stars, so that which you know as Laslow is actually named Inigo!” Odin said, and the redheaded guitarist butted in.

“What my dumbass boyfriend is trying to say is that Laslow is just a stage name. Like Odin and Selena. Brady is too cool to have a stage name, so his name is actually Brady,” Selena said, and Xander understood.

“So what are all your names?” Xander asked.

“I’m Owain,” said Odin.

“Severa,” said Selena.

“And like they said, my name is actually Inigo,” he piped up from beside Xander, still wearing the smile from before.

“Well it’s a pleasure to meet you all, you all performed so well. Are you all performers in your day jobs as well?” Xander asked.

“I wish, but we’re not that good, Curly,” Severa replied.

“I’m a waiter at Applebees,” Brady said, sounding quite bitter about it.

“I’m getting deployed in a month,” Severa said, and Xander saw Owain reach out for her hand.

“I’m one of the dress-up characters at the amusement park,” said Owain, dropping the dramatic speech from earlier.

“I’m usually at the dance studio, but I finally have enough to attend to a conservatory next semester. I’m hoping to make it big someday,” Inigo replied shyly. His demeanor surprised Xander, where he had been confident in front of the crowd, it was almost like seeing a completely different person.

“That’s incredible, and you all have such talent. I think you will do well Inigo, your dancing is unlike any I’ve ever seen before,” Xander said. When Inigo’s face turned a brighter shade of red, Xander wondered whether he’d done something wrong.

“Xander can I speak to you in private?” Inigo asked, his voice strained.

“Of course,” Xander replied, wondering what Inigo was going to say. It seemed like there was something on his mind, and from the expression on his face, it was making him nervous. As the two walked along the boardwalk, Inigo seemed to relax a bit.

“Thank you for teaching me your dance Inigo,” Xander said, and Inigo turned to face him.

“Your welcome. I’ll admit, I wasn’t sure about doing that bit tonight, but after what you did…” he said, his voice straining, “I know that my dancing isn’t traditional, and I’ve had criticism before, but I don’t always handle it well.”

“I thought you handled it rather well,” Xander replied.

“Thank you, and if it’s not too much to ask… Uh,” Inigo began to murmur, his face getting even more red than before.

“What?” Xander asked.

“Wouldyougoonadatewithme?” he said, clamping his hands over his mouth in embarrassment.

“Say again?” Xander said, confused as to what the young man was trying to say.

“Will you… go on a date with me?” he said, his voice jumping half an octave at the end. Xander paused, of all the things he expected Inigo to say, this was not one of them. The thought of sitting across from Inigo in a dimly lit restaurant with little candles on the table as they talked sounded much more pleasant than anything his father would set him up with.

“I’d like that very much.”

**Author's Note:**

> my new blog is aceofthearts


End file.
